Tamim Iqbal has announced his retirement from international once again. This is the second time that the veteran Bangladesh left-hander has announced his retirement. However, there is no coming back after this one.
It was in July 2023 that Tamim initially hung up his boots. He had revealed the same in a very emotional press conference. But the decision was revoked within a day after Sheikh Hasina (who was the Bangladesh Prime Minister back then) intervened. His fitness was an issue and he wanted to test it in the series against Afghanistan
After reversing his retirement decision, Tamim played a couple of ODIs against New Zealand ahead of the 2023 World Cup. However, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) deemed him unfit and omitted him from the World Cup squad. According to Tamim, he would’ve been fit in time for the mega event but the board ignored his request.
Since then, he hasn’t played any form of international cricket. He has featured in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) and has played domestic tournaments in Bangladesh. The experienced opener even opted out of the central contracts list last year.
Hence, Tamim reconfirmed that he will not be returning to international cricket and that chapter is over. He doesn’t want to disturb the team’s focus and steal the limelight.
“I have been away from international cricket for a long time. That distance will remain. My chapter in international cricket is over. I have been thinking about this for a long time. Now that a big event like the Champions Trophy is coming up, I do not want to be the focus of anyone’s attention, which could lead to the team losing their focus. Of course, I did not want this to happen before, too,” Tamim Iqbal wrote on his Facebook page.
The Chittagong-born batter admitted that ODI skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto and the selectors approached him to make a comeback for the upcoming 2025 Champions Trophy. But he revealed that he just listened to what his heart had to say.
“Captain Najmul Hossain Shanto sincerely asked me to return to the team. There were discussions with the selection committee too. I am grateful to them for still considering me in the team. However, I have listened to my own heart,” Tamim added.
Removed myself from the central contract because I did not want to return: Tamim
Tamim further explained that he opted out of the BCB central contract list as he did not intend to return to international cricket. He feels that the discussion of his comeback was ‘unnecessary’. He added that his time has come to move away from the game.
“I removed myself from the BCB central contract a long time ago because I did not want to return to international cricket. Many have said that I have left the matter hanging. Why would anyone discuss a cricketer who is no longer in BCB’s contracted list? I voluntarily stepped down more than a year ago. Even after that, there has been unnecessary discussion. The decision to retire or continue playing is the right of a cricketer or any professional sportsman. I have given myself time. Now I feel that the time has come,” the 35-year-old further explained.
Tamim finishes his international career with 5134 runs at an average of 38.89 in Test cricket, 8357 runs at an average of 36.65 in ODI cricket and 1758 runs at an average of 24.08 in T20Is. Overall, he got 25 hundreds and 94 fifties across the three formats.
